Ammerman v. Township of Coal

Citations

• 187 Pa. 326
• 40 A. 1005
• 1898 Pa. LEXIS 1104

Syllabus

<p>Negligence — Townships—Highways.</p> <p>In an action by a wife against a township to recover damages for the death of her husband, the evidence showed that the deceased, at the time he met his death, was driving home in an intoxicated condition, late at night, on a wagon road with which he was familiar. Parallel with the wagon road was a railroad. The intervening space, which was about thirty feet, was level, and vehicles could pass without inconvenience from the wagon road to and upon this space. Crossing the wagon road, the railroad and the intervening space was a mine drift about ten feet deep. The wagon road crossed the drift by a properly constructed and properly guarded bridge. It appeared that the deceased some distance from the drift left the wagon road and drove over towards the railroad, and then, by a zigzag course, proceeded in the intervening space between the wagon road and the railroad, and finally, without ever reaching the wagon road again, drove into the drift, and was killed. Held, (1) that it was incumbent on the plaintiff to show that the accident resulted from the negligence of the defendant; (2) that no negligence of the defendant was shown, and, therefore, the plaintiff was not entitled to recover.</p>